Nationals catcher Alex Avila will retire at end of season

Avila played eight seasons with the Detroit Tigers. He also had two with the Arizona Diamondbacks and one with the Minnesota Twins. But the 34-year old signed a one-year deal this season with the Nationals.

He appeared in 24 games, including a July 1 start at second base, before he suffered strains in both calves. He landed on the injured list but contracted COVID-19 in the process. The combination of injury and the coronavirus kept him out for two months.

Avila returned this month. But with the Nationals pushing towards the future with Riley Adams and Keibert Ruiz, Avila has been more of a mentor for the two young catcher prospects to close the season.

Avila will call it for his playing career, but the 34-year old isn’t done with baseball.

His father, Al Avila, is the executive vice president of baseball operations and general manager of the Tigers. His grandfather is Ralph Avila, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ longtime international scout. Thus, a future working in the front office may be in store.

Avila was an All-Star in 2011. It was his best season of his career, hitting .295/.389/.506 with 19 home runs and 82 RBIs. He was part of the Tigers core that reached three straight American League Championship Series from 2011-2013, appearing in the 2012 World Series.

He has appeared in over 1,000 games with 105 home runs and 395 runs batted in.